Hi I am looking for a HARDCOVER book I read when I was younger. It is fairly modern and published probably around 2006 - 2007.
It is a hardcover with a cheesey title like:
- Mathematical thinking
- Introduction to math
- guided tour of mathematics
you get my point.
The contents I remember started with highschool combinatorics and then proceeded to bezouts identity. The combinatorics chapter motivated the duscussion using possible arrangements of students sitting a straight line. The bezout identity's chapter motivated the discussion using cups that measure x and y units, and then asking what quantities were possible.
The cover I remember was a mosaic-like pattern with a white border. It also had red and blue borders on the top and bottom. The title was in black with a chalkboard-text like font.
I used to read this book at the Harvard COOP bookstore in their maths section.
http://www.amazon.com/Magic-Numbers-Benedict-Gross/dp/0131777211/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1365960754&sr=1-1&keywords=0131777211
I found it! Took a lot of google searching